Video: Evan Mahaffey, Jake Diebler and Aaron Bradshaw of Ohio State
Ohio State’s Evan Mahaffey, Jake Diebler and Aaron Bradshaw speak with reporters on July 9, 2024.
Ohio State will pay a total of $530,000 to the seven non-conference teams that play games at Value City Arena during the 2024–25 season.
According to signed game contracts, obtained by The Dispatch through a public records request, the Buckeyes will spread the money across a series of games that will see Youngstown State, Evansville, Campbell, Green Bay, Pitt, Valparaiso and Indiana State all come to Columbus.
One of those seven players will not be paid. Ohio State has signed a contract for a home-and-away series with Pitt that will see the Buckeyes travel to Pittsburgh in the 2025-26 season, and the Buckeyes will not pay the Panthers any money to play at Value City Arena.
Valparaiso, the alma mater of new Ohio State coach Jake Diebler, will receive the highest pay of all. The Beacons will receive $100,000 for their Dec. 17 game, $10,000 more than the Youngstown State (Nov. 11) and Indiana State (Dec. 29) games. The in-state Penguins, however, will receive only 250 tickets, more than any other out-of-conference opponent.
The Buckeyes will host Evansville, Campbell and Green Bay over six days from Nov. 19-25. The event was originally scheduled as a three-team multi-team event (MTE), but in an addendum on May 28, the event will now technically be a two-game MTE, with Ohio State’s game against Evansville not counting as part of the event.
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In the original contract, Ohio State’s three opponents had to meet certain criteria in the NCAA’s NET rankings used to select and seed the team for the NCAA Tournament. One team had to have a three-year average between 170 and 350 in the NET, a second team had to have an average between 200 and 350, and the third had to have an average between 230 and 350.
None of the three teams reached the first two thresholds. Campbell had the highest average NET rank over the last three years at 251.7, ahead of Evansville at 293.3 and Green Bay at 310.7.
The MTE is run by the Gazelle Group, which collects a $250,000 fee from Ohio State to run the event. The Buckeyes keep all winnings from the three games, including the one against Evansville.
Ohio State will continue its participation in the CBS Sports Classic with a game against Kentucky on Dec. 17 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The annual event, which has been held since 2014, has been extended through 2026 and the Buckeyes will receive $250,000 in prize money for their participation.
It’s not the only neutral-site game the Buckeyes are being paid for. The Buckeyes will open the season on Nov. 4 as part of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series against Texas at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Ohio State agreed to the event and location without an opponent and received a letter dated Sept. 25, 2023, stating it would play against “a mutually agreed-upon team.” The contract was signed Feb. 19 by Michael Papadakis, Ohio State’s senior vice president for business and finance.
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The Buckeyes will receive $50,000 for their participation in the event, with proceeds from ticket sales going to the Hall of Fame and the arena, and any remaining profits going exclusively to the Hall of Fame.
Ohio State will also face Auburn in a neutral site game at State Farm Center in Atlanta on Dec. 14 as part of the Holiday Hoopsgiving event. Contract details for that game have not been finalized.
In total, Ohio State will spend $230,000 on those nine nonconference games. The Buckeyes will also play at Texas A&M on Nov. 15 to complete a home-and-away series that, like the Pitt game, has no fee.
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